Chapter 603: Return to Camp
[V6C133 – Sorrow of a Silent Parting]
Qianye was covered in dust, and nothing more than rags were left of his combat robes. His armor wasn’t any better, and that was only because Young Dragon’s materials were sufficiently robust. The grey paint Qianye had applied had peeled off in many areas, revealing the silvery white underneath—the mottled color was no different from the wall of an old house.
There was a routine checkpoint set up before the barracks area to verify the identity of the visitors.
While waiting, Qianye discovered that the designation number of the guards there had changed. Perhaps they had been transferred away or their squad had some other use for them. Either way, it wasn’t a good thing for ordinary soldiers. There was no better position than a base guard during times of war.
Following the short line forward, he suddenly noticed some bullet holes and shrapnel marks on the walls. Traces of battle could still be seen although a good part of the wall had been repaired and repainted.
“Was there a dark race attack?” Qianye inquired.
A veteran replied, “It was last week, several dozen vampires and arachne launched a raid. Their firepower was rather fierce. Just look at those walls, they were just rebuilt.”
Even the camp walls were demolished? Qianye’s heart sank. The Li family’s construction standards were on the level of a military city. It wasn’t just the superior height—these walls would be fairly difficult to demolish without the use of siege weaponry or, perhaps in this case, high-ranking dark race experts.
“How are the casualties?”
The veteran sighed. “Over two hundred men died. Most of them were ordinary soldiers. The company in charge of guarding this barracks was virtually wiped out the moment the attack began.”
“How about the generals?”
At the mention of this, the old veteran smiled helplessly. “A number of them came, but what was the use? Reportedly, there were at least two counts on the other side.
Qianye figured out the situation after a brief chat. It was a brief dark race raid. The assault team wasn’t big, but their combat strength was exceptional. There were two squads moving through the camp gates when the enemy arrived, resulting in confusion and heavy losses.
The dark race forces retreated after a single wave, but not before killing a Li family brigadier general who had come to help. Afterward, they pulled back into the Misty Wood and disappeared.
No wonder new turrets and watchtowers had been placed around the camp gates. Qianye looked up at the new equipment, but truth be told, the ten-meter-tall weaponry offered him no greater peace of mind. They were little more than decorations to targets beyond their visual range. They were mostly there to provide comfort to the lower-ranking warriors.
At this moment, the young guards picked up their pace under the urging of the old veteran and quickly completed Qianye’s inspection. The latter didn’t inquire further and only entered the base.
The old guard’s gaze followed Qianye’s receding figure until it disappeared into the base. Only then did he look away with a sigh.
The young guard beside him was rather curious. “Old Liu, you’ve never been so careful around those major generals. How come you’ve changed this time? I’m telling you, you would’ve been promoted to a staff officer by now if it wasn’t for your bad temper. Why would you need to watch the gate with us rookies?”
That Old Liu glared at him and spat, “Those major generals are nothing. There isn’t even a designation number on their empty rank emblems. Who knows how they snaked their way in. But that one just now isn’t the same, he’s definitely a fierce character! Don’t be fooled by his brigadier general rank. He’ll make short work of those major generals in a real fight.”
“How is that possible?” The young guard was skeptical. Qianye’s emblem was a true military rank, but that emblem depicting a bloodstained bayonet and flintlock was too unfamiliar. The young guard couldn’t recall any imperial corps with that emblem.
“Did you notice how unusual his armor was? Those nicks and gaps had a blue glow to them. That kind of alloy is a premium item only generals can use. Just think about what kind of person he is, to be wearing such armor? And what kind of enemy would it take to badly damage such an armor? That being said, he’s practically uninjured. What kind of strength is that?”
The young guard was in a daze. “He’s really that powerful?”
The old veteran snorted, “As I see it, those arrogant so-called generals won’t even get through his armor.”
Off in the distance, Qianye had no idea that a part of his strength had been gauged just from the glint on the cut edges of his tattered Young Dragon.
What greeted him as he walked through the barracks gates was a scene of wreckage and the hundreds of military engineers at work. However, the scene of destruction was simply too vast, covering two entire street blocks. The chore of clearing it up would take several more days.
After seeing the traces of this battle, Qianye understood that the old veteran just now wasn’t exaggerating. It had to be a count at least—and definitely not one like Stuka whose combat strength was at the very bottom—to be able to cause such destruction.
The dark races even reached this place? Qianye once again sensed the seriousness of the situation.
He then thought about the batch of elites Eden was escorting. It was clear that the dark races were planning something big in the Misty Wood. The entire Misty Wood would fall into dark race hands if the Li clan base were uprooted. At that time, the central cavernous maze would naturally become Evernight territory, and the only area under complete imperial control would be the Zhao clan warzone.
Qianye passed through the barracks and paused briefly in front of the new signboard to memorize the layout of the base. Then, he headed over to the contribution exchange area. The road along the way was bustling with activity and packed with all kinds of military vehicles. It would seem that the Li family was clear about their situation and had responded rapidly by summoning a steady stream of preformed army corps.
The area for independent hunters was still the same, but Qianye saw a fair number of new faces there. It would seem the Li family was recruiting experts with all their might.
Qianye had no opinion about these potential competitors. More manpower meant that they could share some of the pressure from the dark races. His fight with the young demonkin expert proved one thing—imperial contribution points weren’t that easy to earn. Every point came at the risk of one’s head.
The inner hall was full at the moment, and there were even some people queueing up in the waiting area. Qianye’s turn came only after a good while.
Qianye felt a gaze from behind as he entered the room, even eliciting from him a mild tingling pain. But he paid little attention to this and only closed the door, effectively isolating the stare. The Li family’s generous bounty had attracted many experts from the four corners of the empire. No one knew how many powerful experts had hidden themselves among these people.
In the hall, a number of people were walking out after concluding their business. A youth with prominent eyebrows couldn’t help but pause briefly when he saw Qianye’s figure disappear beyond the door.
Someone beside him detected the abnormality. “Young Master, what’s the matter?”
The young man frowned. “Go and investigate who that person is. There’s a familiar smell on his body, perhaps he has the thing I want. Oh, and don’t make a big fuss.”
That person looked at the room, memorized the door number, and said, “Rest assured, Young Master, I’ll bring you the results after you finish lunch.”
The young man nodded and left with his entourage. His words weren’t loud, and the hall was full of clamor, so no one noticed this interlude.
After entering the single room, Qianye saw a female officer in her thirties. Capable and astute, she finished registering several documents in a flash before turning toward Qianye. “Sorry for the wait, there’s been too much work recently. How can I help you?”
Qianye replied, “I want the latest intelligence, especially the Evernight faction’s movements in Misty Wood. I also wish to register some contribution points, including high-grade equipment.”
“Equipment? Can I take a look?” With that, the female officer brought out two folders containing the most recent intelligence and placed it in front of Qianye.
Qianye opened the document and said while flipping through it, “That won’t do, the item is fairly special and your origin power is insufficient. You might be injured if you touch it.”
The officer’s eyes flickered. “Don’t tell me it’s a black titanium weapon?”
Qianye was startled. He hadn’t expected this female officer to know that much. But he had already planned to sell the shadowguard daggers to the Li family, so there was nothing to hide. “Indeed. The weapon’s quality is very high, it’s best you don’t touch it.”
After confirming her guess, the female officer stood up and said respectfully, “An item of that grade is beyond my authority to register. Please wait a while, I’ll invite General Weishi over.”
That female officer moved like the wind and soon returned with a capable-looking middle-aged man.
Qianye had seen this person. Li Weishi was born of the Li family and his extraordinary ability brought him all the way to the general position. But with his origin power level and side-branch origins, that was likely the limit unless he could break through once more.
Li Weishi was full of smiles as he entered. He greeted Qianye passionately and whispered, “I heard you have some good stuff?”
After Qianye nodded, Li Weishi immediately sent the female officer away and locked the door. Qianye brought out and opened a box made for isolating radiation, revealing the two daggers within.
“Umbral Edge?!” Li Weishi’s voice trembled. He had apparently recognized the origins of the two blades in Qianye’s possession.
Qianye shot Li Weishi a glance after the latter cried out the name of the demonkin shadows’ daggers. This meant that the demonkin assailant’s identity was more or less in reach.
Qianye pushed the box toward Li Weishi. An origin glow had already lit up on the latter’s body when the blades were revealed. The glow of the barrier wasn’t quite stable, however—the surface in contact with the daggers was clearly rippling.
Li Weishi was delighted as he picked up the dagger and ran a finger over it. A layer of black smoke emerged from his fingertips. “It’s indeed high-purity black titanium! Good blade!”
Li Weishi placed the daggers back into the box and closed the lid reluctantly. “General Qianye, these two items require further assessment to confirm their detailed value. It’s not me making things difficult for you. The value is just too high, So the matter must be dealt with cautiously. The confirmation and dispatch will take some time.”
This request was within reason. Qianye said with a nod, “Then, convert them to imperial military contributions and register them under my name.”
“That won’t be a problem.” Li Weishi was full of smiles as he formed an origin power seal on the metallic box. Then, he summoned his subordinate outside the door and carefully ordered him to deliver the blades to the armory.